Many people are inspired to go field
herping after watching nature programs, a chance
encounter of a herptile whilst out on a walk, or as an
extension of keeping reptiles and amphibians in
captivity. Like many people when they start this
hobby I expected to just walk around in the countryside
and see loads of different species without much
difficulty. It does not take too long to realise this is
not the case and to get anything out of a field trip you
need to put a lot of effort into
research and planning to increase your chances of seeing
these often elusive creatures. Field herping can often
be frustrating when you start out - I hope this site and
the book I have written on the subject "Field Herpetology" will make
things easier for those starting out and also to provide
food for thought for more experienced herpers.

Habitat like the Hardwood Hammock in
the Florida Everglades shown below is a paradise for
many species of reptiles and amphibians. Despite large
densities of both number of species and individual
specimens in this habitat you will have
to learn quite a few techniques before you start to make
observations. At first you might not see anything at
all.....but they are in there!!

With some background research and some
practice you will be able to find specimens of the local
herp population with increasing regularity and
experience the excitement of finding herptiles to
observe in the wild. Persistence is the key
even if you have limited success at first and it always
worth remembering that even the most experience field
herper will days days when they find little or nothing
to write home about.

To use the site navigate using the
links to the left of your screen - the site has been
broken down into sections to make life a little easier.
Feel free to use the email link to make comments, ask
questions or just to exchange views on the
world of herpetology - friendly response guaranteed!!
Make sure you visit the "Wallpapers"
page to download free herp related backgrounds for your
PC or laptop. I intend to regularly update the site with
field trip notes, field herping news and
hopefully some video of my excursions, so check back
regularly.